This invention relates generally to stays for sails, and more particularly to improved double-grooved forestay or jibstay arrangements by which it is possible to rapidly hoist, change and trim jibs.
Depending upon sailing conditions, it is frequently desirable to change jibs during the course of sailing. This is particularly true on sailboats used in racing. As can be readily appreciated, when it becomes desirable during a race to change from a jib of one size to one of a different size, the speed with which the change is made is extremely important. Most frequently, only one jibstay is employed and it is a wire or rod member.
When it is necessary to change jibs, the change is accomplished by lowering the first jib, removing it from the wire or rod, setting the second jib on the wire or rod and then raising the second jib. From the foregoing, it is apparent that valuable racing time is lost while the first jib is being lowered and removed and the second jib is being hoisted and trimmed.
One approach which the prior art tried in an attempt to speed up the jib changing process was the use of two separate jibstays or forestays, one for each jib. In order to maintain proper tension on both jibstays, it was necessary to replace the backstay and the related hardware with equipment which was capable of maintaining twice as much total tension on the pair of jibstays. Moreover, if such a costly "beefing up" of the backstay equipment were feasible, the use of two separate jibstays was still not a desirable solution to the problem. A second jibstay which was merely idle and not supporting a jib was undesirable from an aerodynamic standpoint. Additionally, a second jibstay involved a duplication of the equipment used in conjunction with the first stay, such as for anchoring the stay. This obviously increases the complexity and weight of the rigging.
Jib furling stays have been proposed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,611,969 and 3,658,025 which employ a single C-shaped member made of rolled stainless steel wherein the boltrope or bead of the jib is fed into the open portion of the C-shaped member. The C-shaped member can be rotated to furl the jib and it acts to support the mast. The cross section of the C-shaped member is relatively thin so that jibs with conventional clips can be applied around it. A disadvantage of these stays is that they do not have sufficient strength and torsional rigidity. Moreover, they do not permit the changing of jibs appreciably faster than the more conventional arrangements and they still require a period in which no jib is set and drawing.
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a stay for a sail which is especially suited to receive and retain the beads or boltropes on the luffs of two jibs simultaneously. The stay preferably comprises a member which is oval shaped in cross section and has a pair of oppositely disposed, longitudinal slots through each of which boltropes of sails can extend. With the use of this stay, a second jib can be hoisted and set while the first sail is still in position, thereby preventing a loss of power during the changing of sails.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a stay which can accommodate two separate feed systems to allow two sails to be hoisted at the same time, thus reducing the time lost during any sail change.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a streamlined stay having good aerodynamic characteristics which will cause a minimum of turbulence and disruption of the laminar air flow.